


Of Kings and Superheros

by DavisLeo



Category: K (Anime), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Crack Relationships, Crossover, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-25
Updated: 2019-03-08
Packaged: 2019-05-13 14:09:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 16,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14750357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DavisLeo/pseuds/DavisLeo
Summary: Huge energy spikes have been detected in Shizume City, Japan. The Avengers are sent to investigate. Upon arrival, the Avengers get sucked into a world they never knew existed... Except for one.K Project and Avengers Crossover. K AU - Mikoto is alive and Reisi killed the Colorless King





	1. Going to Japan

"Speech" - English. " _Speech_ " - Japanese. 'Speech' - thoughts.

        Nick Fury and Agent Maria Hill enter the large building known as the Avengers Tower. Upon entrance, Fury tells JARVIS to let the Avengers know to assemble on Tony's floor. He and Maria enter the elevator and wait as they head up to Tony's floor. Maria checks over her clipboard to make sure she had all of the correct information down. The elevator dings and the two walk out, immediately getting confronted by the one and only Tony Stark.

        "Let me guess, not a social call?" Tony asks.

        "You would be correct on that Stark. I take it the others are on their way?" Fury responds.

        "Yup. And fortunately for you, Thor is conveniently here as he decided to drop by for a visit earlier this morning," Tony says. "Drink?"

        "I'll pass," Fury declines. Tony looks at Maria.

        "I'm good. Thanks for the offer," Maria answers. A few minutes later, the rest of the Avengers start to trickle in. First came Steve, Bruce shortly after him. Natasha was next, Clint right alongside her. Of course Thor was fashionably late and the last one to enter.

        "Director. What seems to be the problem?" Steve says, getting straight to the point.

        "Well I hope y'all aren't too comfortable. Maria," Fury says, looking at the female agent. A few people shifted uncomfortably. That was never a good sign. Maria clears her throat before speaking.

        "We have been getting many reports indicating many and large energy spikes going off in Japan. More specifically Shizume City. Usually we wouldn't be worried as this location is known in our databases to get these large energy spikes but they have been going off more frequently then previously recorded. We need you guys to go investigate," Maria explains.

        "Japan? Why take interest there?" Bruce asks, both curious and suspicious.

        "These energy spikes are large enough that they're being picked up on our radars located in California. We've been watching the reports due to the large spikes, just to make sure that this won't turn into a national crisis," Fury answers. Bruce nods, accepting that answer. Steve looks to Tony.

        "Since not all of us have JARVIS to translate for us, I don't suppose you have a translator for the rest of us made?" Steve asks. Tony smirks at Steve.

        "Funny you should ask that Capsicle! Brucie and I have just finished making a translator specifically in case we ever got sent to another foreign country and have to speak with the locals," Tony answers.

        "It only works with Earth languages however," Bruce adds quickly, seeing something flash in Fury's eye.

        "Awesome. Got enough for everyone to have one?" Clint asks curiously.

        "Yup. The only two who don't need one is myself and Thor," Tony says.

        "That is true! You have your wonderful electronic companion JARVIS to help you translate and I have my Allspeak!" Thor beams proudly.

        "Alright, I'll go grab them," Bruce says before scuttling off to get the translators from the lab. The rest of the team sat in an uncomfortable silence as they thought about the upcoming mission they would have to go on. They hoped it wasn't anything too serious and that this would just be a one day thing. But knowing them, it was one or the other. Either dangerous and one day or not too dangerous but would take a few days to do. Bruce eventually returns from the lab and he passes out silver bracelets that had a blue screen on them to everyone but Tony and Thor. Everyone slides them on and adjusts them to their wrists.

        "So how do these work Doc?" Natasha asks, looking at the bracelet and then to the good doctor.

        "Well, you tap on the screen and like Google Translate, you set the languages you want to translate to. We have the default as detect language to English. After the detected language is translated, you can speak into it and unless otherwise specified, it will translate back to the other language. But you do need to calibrate to your voice so it knows when it needs to translate to English or from English," Bruce says. He helps Steve as the super soldier was the only one clueless about how to calibrate it to his voice. 

        "Since y'all got that shit calibrated, get your asses suited up and get to Japan. The coordinates have been sent to Stark," Fury says, dismisses them. He turns, his coat flapping a bit dramatically as he leaves with Maria. Everyone gets ready and heads to the quinjet they had so they could get to Japan once they all were suited up.


	2. When Worlds Collide

"Speech" - English. " _Speech" -_ Japanese. 'Speech' - thoughts.

* * *

        The sound of small explosions, clashing of metal and the rumble of two giant swords echo through one of the main streets in Shizume City, Japan. Red and blue bursts of light flash around as HOMRA and Scepter 4 fight. The two clans had been fighting more frequently ever since the whole Colorless King debacle had finished. Red King Mikoto Suoh was annoyed that he wasn't the one to finish off the Colorless King as the Blue King Reisi Munakata did it before Mikoto even had a chance. This was the cause of the already existing tension between the two clans to rise even more. The fights were the usual scrimmages between the two clans but were just happening more frequently. Just as Mikoto and Reisi were about to strike at each other again, a figure with an umbrella appeared between the two.

        " _Yashiro Isana or Adolf K Weismann. What pleasure do we owe you_?" Reisi asks, looking at the Silver King who had stopped them.

        " _Please, just Shiro is fine. Anyways, you two need to stop fighting. It's getting exceedingly excessive_ ," Shiro says. " _We also have a big threat to take care of._ "

        " _A bigger problem?_ " Mikoto asks, raising an eyebrow. He glared a bit towards Reisi, his hands still coated in red. 

        " _Yes._ JUNGLE _clansmen have been causing even more havoc with you two constantly fighting. I think the Green King is up to something,_ " Shiro says. He suddenly looks up hearing an engine. " _Uh Munakata... Is that one of yours?"_ The two other kings look up at and see the quinjet pass over them.

        " _No. I have never seen anything like that.... We should probably investigate and put our quarrel on hold_ ," Reisi says.

        " _Hmph,_ " Mikoto says. The three kings go to where they saw the quinjet fly over, the clansmen stopping their fight as they see their kings walking towards something. Izumo Kusanagi and Seri Awashima quickly order their clansmen to stay alert before joining their respective kings.

        " _So.. What's got you guys working together?_ " Izumo asks, looking at Mikoto.

        " _A bigger threat apparently. Also some sort of foreign aircraft landed nearby,_ " Mikoto answers. The group of five approach the landing site and were confused to see some oddly dressed people step out of the aircraft. Each person gets ready to fight in case these strangers were hostile. A figure with a red cape and a large hammer speaks to them before anyone else can make a move.

**~ Moments before ~**

        "I think we found the source of the energy spikes," Clint says, spotting the giant fucking swords floating in the air. He blinks when seeing a third sword join the fray. He steers the quinjet around the colorful swords and a bit past the site so they could all safely disembark the wuinjet after landing. After landing the quinjet, everyone gets out and those who needed to, activated their translator. 

        "Looks like we've got company..." Natasha comments, spotting five individuals. She looks over them all. One had a lighter, another had a large red aura around him, the third had an umbrella, resting against his shoulder. The fourth and fifth had similar uniforms and swords ready. The male had a blue aura around him whereas the woman just had her sword ready.

        " _Hello! We do not mean any harm unless you mean us harm! We are here to see why such large energy spikes are originating here!"_  Thor booms to the strangers.

        " _Before we go any further, state who you are!_ " Seri says, lifting her sword towards Thor. 

        " _Of course fair maiden! I am Thor, the Norse God of Thunder,_ " Thor says. Mikoto snorted lightly hearing Thor call Seri a fair maiden. Steve  stepped up and hoped this translator worked the other way.

        "I am Steve Rogers. Otherwise known as Captain America when with the Avengers," Steve says, gesturing to the five with him. The bracelet projected his words into Japanese for the others. The rest of the Avengers introduced themselves after Steve.

        " _Interesting... They have translators. How thoughtful,"_  Reisi muses.

 _"_ Wait... Captain Rogers? Is that really you??" Shiro says, surprising everyone with English. He approaches Steve. "My, you haven't aged at all! How is it you still look so young?"

        "Uh, who are you? I apologize if I don't recognize you," Steve says, looking at the white haired male. The other four who spoke Japanese were glad that the translators were still going.

        "Ah! Of course, how rude of me to not introduce myself! You wouldn't recognize me right now. I am Adolf K Weismann. However you can call me Shiro for now since this is my current body," Shiro says. Steve's blue eyes widen.

        "Weismann?" Steve says shocked. "So if you're still alive, that means HYDRA didn't get you or your slates and that you go the slates to work."

        "Yup! Oh it's so good to see you Captain!" Shiro beams. He turns to his friends. " _It's alright. These guys are friends. We can trust him and his friends_ ," he says, watching as the Kings and their second-in-commands revert to a neutral state. 

        "Whoa whoa whoa whoa... What's going on here? And what do you mean by slates? And how the hell did you two meet exactly?" Tony says, after getting out of his suit since the situation wouldn't require it

        "I suppose we have a lot of explaining to do, don't we Weismann, er, Shiro?" Steve says. "Got anywhere we can go to that's more private?"

        "Let me ask," Shiro says. " _Mikoto, Izumo. Would you mind if we used your bar to discuss further matters?"_

        " _I got no problems with it as long as Mikoto doesn't,"_ Izumo answered. Everyone turns to looks at the red King.

        " _Whatever. I don't care. Just don't bring all of your blues Reisi,"_ Mikoto says, sighing.

        " _Alright. Munakata, Awashima, please meet us all at_ HOMRA _in a few. I'm off to get Kuroh and Neko_ ," Shiro says to the blue King and Seri, before heading off to get his two clansmen.

        " _You six can follow Mikoto and myself to base. We won't bite,_ " Izumo offers with a smile. HOMRA and the Avengers head to the HOMRA bar while Munakata gathers up Scepter 4 and orders them back to the base while keeping Seri Awashima, and his third, Saruhiko Fushimi, with him. The three blues go the bar as well. Everything was tense and awkward inside HOMRA with the rival clans and the newly introduced Avengers. Everyone looked over when the door opened again, revealing Shiro and two more people.

        " _Oh good everyone is here! Now we can begin our tale!"_


	3. A Story of Destine

       "Speech" - English. " _Speech" -_ Japanese. 'Speech' - thoughts.

* * *

         Shiro smiles at everyone present. He looks to Steve to see if the captain was ready for their history to be told. Just as he was about to start, Tony speaks out before a single word could be uttered by the first and silver king.

        "Hold up! Before you start your story, let me have JARVIS translate so both sides here can know the full story! Avengers, turn off your bracelets!" Tony says. He glares playfully at Natasha who made a comment about him being thoughtful. "I can be thoughtful when I want to be!" he huffs.

        "Ah, what a wonderful idea Mr. Stark! I will speak in English so Captain Rogers can more easily add in any points I might miss," Shiro says with a smile. The Avengers turn off their bracelets and let Tony have JARVIS act as a two-way translator so that both sides could hear the story and also add input when necessary.

        "Not to be rude, but uh Shiro, who are these two?" Steve asks, gesturing to a man in dark clothes and to a woman in pink.

        "Oh, right! Haha, I forgot they weren't with me. These are my clansmen! The male in black is Kuroh Yatogami and the female in pink is Neko," Shiro explains. He turns to Neko. " _Thank you for wearing clothes Neko. It's very much appreciated."_

        " _Only because you asked Shiro! As much as I hate wearing clothes...."_ Neko says, huffing at the end.

        "Anyways, onto our story then. I'll be sure to pause here and there so your JARVIS can translate," Shiro says. "Well it all started in World War Two. I was a scientist and I was researching with my sister Klaudia, may she rest in peace, the Dresden Slate. The Dresden Slate is what gives us Kings, such as myself, Mikoto Suoh and Reisi Munakata for example, the powers we have. Each King has a Sword of Damocles, which were those giant swords you saw in the sky. The Slate also gives the Kings and their clansmen the power of Aura which gives different powers based on which clan you are in. Any questions so far?"

        "So out of three clans here, what are each of their powers?" Bruce asks curiously.

        "Silver clansmen can manipulate gravity. I being the silver King am the only one with immortality," Shiro says. 

        " _Nyaaaa~ Look at me!!"_ Neko says, floating in the air next to Shiro.

        " _NEKO!_   _Get down right now!"_ Kuroh scolds the Strain.

        "That would explain why you're still alive..." Steve says gently. He looks at Mikoto and Reisi. "What about you two?" 

        " _Fire basically. But it can also destroy almost anything,_ " Mikoto answers, lifting his fist and the red aura appearing around it.

        " _Sadly, this is true as this one blew up our prison as if he was tearing paper,"_  Reisi says, causing Mikoto to smirk who was obviously pleased with that accomplishment. " _Anyways, those of_ Scepter 4 _are able to attack in rapid succession and strike multiple areas. However, unlike_ HOMRA _,_ Scepter 4 _aura is more of a defensive mechanism and as such the attacks aren't as powerful as the red aura. I am the only one who can repair physical objects."_

        "Wow. That all seems like cheating," Tony comments. "But do continue."

        "Right. If it wasn't obvious by my name, I am from Germany. However, I was a mostly neutral party. My research began closer to the end of the war and towards the end of my research when I had finally discovered the secrets was when Captain Rogers and his Howling Commandos had found my lab. Quite the fright you guys gave me," Shiro says, chuckling towards the end, causing Steve to rub the back of his neck sheepishly.

        "Oops? Anyways, I had been given reports of odd energy surges from this one place and so, I took my Howling Commandos with me, to go investigate, in case it was HYDRA. Upon entering, I immediately saw that we did not discover a HYDRA base but fortunately for me and the guys, Shiro was good-natured about the whole thing and explained to me the Dresden Slate. I, of course, immediately asked him to stop so that the war could end and so that the Nazi party couldn't use it," Steve adds.

        "I reassured the Captain that I wouldn't be letting anyone use it for the war, as I had only wanted to bring happiness with it. Shortly after my sister's untimely death due to the site being bombed, I decided I was done with the war completely and took off in the airship called Himmelreich," Shiro concludes. The Avengers and most of the clansmen present took a moment to digest the information that was given to him.

        " _Excuse me sir... But I have a question to ask you if that's alright..._ " an albino girl sitting in Mikoto's lap speaks up. Her red eyes were locked with Steve's blue ones as she spoke.

        "Of course miss...?" Steve says, offering a warm smile as to help soothe the young girl.

        " _Anna Kushina. I was wondering... How are you still alive if if you knew Shiro back then?"_  Anna asks curiously, hiding a bit into Mikoto.

        " _I was wondering the same thing. You don't look much older than myself or Mikoto_ ," Izumo adds in. Steve gives a sad smile hearing the question.

        "Well, HYDRA is an extreme Nazi party that threatened to take over the world. Their leader, a man by the name of Johann Shmidt and later known as the Red Skull, became obsessed with an artifact called the Tesseract that allowed unimaginable power. Essentially, he was going for world domination. In our final battle, he seemingly disappeared in the cube or something and the plane we were in was destined to drop bombs on America, devastating the cities and surrounding areas that the bombs were labeled for. I really only had one choice and I forced the plane into the waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, causing my body to be frozen and was in suspended animation for about 70 years," Steve explains. He was surprised when Anna went over to him and hugged him.

        " _I'm sorry. That must have been awful..."_  Anna says softly, having sensed the sorrow Steve was feeling.

        "It's alright. Things could have been a lot worse," Steve says. He gives a smile to the small girl who then goes back to Mikoto.

        "It's almost as if Destiny decided to keep us together Steve. Funny how that is, isn't it?" Shiro says, looking at the blonde who nodded with an amused chuckle.

        " _I think after those stories, a round of drinks is in order. This will be on the house so no worries,_ " Izumo says, getting up and walking to his bar.

        "I like the way you think!" Tony grins, after hearing Izumo's words translated. A few snorts and groans populated HOMRA as drinks were ordered and made.


	4. Of JUNGLE and Missions

"Speech" - English. " _Speech" -_ Japanese. 'Speech' - thoughts.

* * *

        After everyone sitting down and enjoying their drinks made by Izumo, the Avengers, Kings and clansmen settle down and talk to their respective people. The Avengers were mostly just trying to sort out all this new information, Tony throwing mock-betrayed looks at Steve for not telling them. Steve just shrugged at Tony in return since he hadn't known that Shiro had been successful. A ringtone goes off, startling everyone. It was Natasha's and boy was Steve glad that it wasn't his phone as he still struggled with technology. Natasha excuses herself and she goes to the other side of the room for some privacy. 

        "Hello?" Natasha answers.

        "Romanoff. What's the status over there?" came Fury's voice.

        "Situation is clear. Nothing to worry about at the moment. Apparently the surges were from the Kings chosen by a Dresden Slate. Steve apparently knows the 1st of Seven Kings from World War 2."

        "Huh. I want a full report of the story sent to me. I assume Stark was smart enough to record the conversation?"

        "Possibly. Worst case scenario, I just write it all down from memory."

        "Though something else caught my ear Romanoff. What do you mean 'nothing to worry about at the moment'?"

        "Something seems to be eating at the 1st King's mind. He seems uneasy about something and it's not because of the 3rd and 4th King having their normal fight."

        "I see. Report back to me when you find out more. I will most likely have the team stay to help if possible."

        "Of course Director," Natasha says, hanging up. She walks back over to the Avengers. "Tony, please tell me you recorded that conversation so I don't have to write it out."

        "Of course I did! I'm a genius remember!" Tony says with a scoff.

        "Just cause you're a genius Stark doesn't mean you have common sense..." Clint grumbles off to the side, only to get a glare sent his way.

        "But why do you ask?" Tony says, turning his attention back at the Russian spy.

        "Fury wants you to send it to him. What else?" Nat says, rolling her eyes. 

        "JARVIS! Send Director Fury a copy of the conversation!" Tony called out, the AI responding with a "Right away sir!" Everyone went back to the calm and comfortable conversations they were having prior to the phone call. The only difference this time was that Natasha, Steve and Anna were looking at Shiro carefully, wondering when the 1st and silver King would speak up. Shiro feels eyes on him and looks around, noticing Natasha, Steve and Anna were staring at him. 'Guess I'm not hiding my thoughts very well,' Shiro thought to himself.

        " _Guys, I have something else to bring to everyone's attention,"_  Shiro says before repeating in English to the Avengers. Everyone went back to being slightly uncomfortable as they all got seated to listen to what Shiro was saying. Tony activates JARVIS again to act as translator.

        " _So does this have to do with_ JUNGLE _?"_ Mikoto asks bluntly.

        " _Yes. It has to do with the green clan. The Green King is named Nagare Hisui. Normally, I wouldn't be bothered by the large amount of clansmen he has as a King can have as many clansmen as he so desires. What worries me is HOW he is doing it. He has released an app that allows anyone who downloads it to become a low leveled clansmen,"_  Shiro starts out.

        " _I've actually noticed that. It's been causing a few problems here and there but the police have it covered_ ," Saruhiko comments.

        " _Exactly my point. Right now everything is fine but the more people that join, the larger the clan becomes and therefore they endanger the public. We need a way to stop them before things get out of hand!_ " Shiro says.

        " _If we had an inside man to help us figure out what was going on that would be great...."_ Reisi murmurs, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

        "I'll do it," Tony speaks up. "I'll be your inside man. Shouldn't be too hard right?" 

        "Stark, you should let Clint or I handle this. This is infiltration and last I checked, that is not your specialty," Natasha says.

        "Uh, I think Tony would honestly be the best fit for this," Bruce says, speaking up. He was not surprised to see all eyes on him. "I think Tony should do it because Nagare would know him enough to not be entirely suspicious. For he knows, Tony could be getting greedy and why not have an eager and greedy clansmen to help him with his evil plans? It would be suspicious if a clansmen went into it, so that's where we come in. And out of all of us, it should be Tony. He's the best with technology besides myself, he has JARVIS and no offense Tony, but he's the most willing to do stupid things to get information."

        "I'm in agreement with Doctor Banner. Stark, you're up. Don't mess this up," Steve says, looking at the man.

        "I won't!" Tony says, opening up his phone to download the JUNGLE app so that he could get right into doing missions. 

        "Make sure to give us updates. Especially Reisi. Scepter 4 is tasked in helping keep the cities safe," Shiro says.

        "Yeah got it. And huh? This doesn't seem like a rank E mission..." Tony says, frowning.

        " _What is the mission?"_ Reisi inquires, looking at the billionaire. Tony looks up a little nervously. 

        "Well I somehow got boosted to rank G... I'm a little worried now. But the mission is to capture Anna."

 

**~ Somewhere hidden...... ~**

        A deep chuckle emits from the mysterious man known as Nagare Hisui. He was just informed of on Anthony Howard Stark joining JUNGLE. " _How wonderful of you to join us mister Stark. Your addition to this family will be very useful. And just to show my gratitude of you joining us and possibly helping our plan go through.. I will make you rank G. I hope you don't disappoint us... Tony_."


	5. We Need a Plan of Attack

"Speech" - English. " _Speech" -_ Japanese. 'Speech' - thoughts.

* * *

        "Well I somehow got boosted to rank G... I'm a little worried now. But the mission is to capture Anna," Tony says, looking up from his phone, a nervous look on his face. He didn't want to kidnap this young child and by the silence and death stare from a pair of yellow eyes, it looked like no one else wanted him to go through with it either.

        " _No. You will fail that mission and be demoted,"_ Mikoto growled. His clan already lost Tatara and almost lost him. There was no way he was willing to risk Anna's safety just to get someone on the inside. He may not show emotion or show signs that he cares about people but he truly did care about his clansmen's safety. His arms wrapped around the young girl protectively, as if daring Tony to try to take Anna away from him.

        " _Mikoto,"_  Anna says, looking up at the redheaded King. She could feel his anger and reaches up to place a pale hand on his cheek. " _It's okay. I'll be fine. Tony will be with me_ ," she says.

        " _Besides Mikoto, you honestly think we wouldn't have a backup to keep things from going south, would you?"_  Reisi says, a smirk appearing on his face. " _There's no way we'd just send Stark in with Anna and without a backup plan of some sort."_

 _"_ If you don't mind me uh saying Mr. Suoh but if we don't go through with it, this Nagare guy might get onto all of us. He shouldn't know that Tony is aligned with you guys. For he knows, Tony could just be here in Japan doing a visit and heard about JUNGLE and decided to see what was up," Bruce says, speaking up. He glances around timidly. "I don't like the idea of sending a child somewhere without knowing why she is wanted but it's the only lead we have."

        " _At least hear the plan out first, Mikoto,_ " Shiro says, looking at the Red King, who was still death glaring Tony.

        " _Fine. But if I don't approve, Stark refuses,"_  Mikoto says, arms still around Anna protectively. Tony would rather be demoted instead of having to take Anna in but, he knew that this might be their only chance.

        " _So we have to play it out so that it looks like a kidnapping. Tony 'kidnaps' Anna and then as he's taking Anna to the necessary location, we have Saruhiko and one of your clansmen follow the two. Perhaps an Avenger for extra coverage. These two or three people follow and observe what happens. If Anna and Tony go separate ways, the group splits - one follows Anna and the other follows Tony. When the moment is right, Anna is busted out and returned safely to you,"_  Reisi easily explains. 

        " _Which one of you would be willing to go? Understand that Anna's safety is the priority in this case,"_  Mikoto says, turning to the Avengers. A red glint flashes across his yellow eyes, giving a warning should the Avenger that volunteers fails, it would not be pleasant. Clint and Natasha were instantly the top choices for this. 

        "I think it should be the Eye of the Hawk that does this quest!" Thor inputs immediately.

        "Really? I was thinking Natasha should be the one," Bruce says, stroking his chin thoughtfully. 

        "Tony, who do you think would be better?" Natasha asks, looking at the man in question.

        "Probably Clint to be honest," Tony says. He turns to Steve who had been awfully quiet. "What has spangled your stars?"

        "I don't like any of this..." Steve says quietly. He looked at the redheaded King and then the small little girl in his arms. "There has to be another way to do this. Couldn't we say that we have Anna and then just like ambush the guy without actually handing her off to JUNGLE? Yes we'd still be using Anna but we could make it so that she's even safer."

        "It'll be alright Captain. I know you don't like this, but I promise you everything will be ok," Shiro says, setting a hand on top of Steve's, hoping to ease the super soldier. Steve sighs in defeat, deciding to trust Shiro on this one. Mikoto looks at Steve. 

        " _I appreciate your efforts to help out Anna and that you want what's best for her. If you'd like, I could make you a clansmen and have you follow alongside Fushimi instead of sending Yata,"_ Mikoto says. The Red King felt that he could trust Steve out of all of the Avengers the most. Perhaps it was how willing he was to keep Anna safe. Or maybe it's because that Shiro seemed to trust Steve and the Silver King had yet to fail them on that sort of thing. Steve looked a little shocked at hearing Mikoto's proposition. He looks at the Red King and saw how serious he was. Steve looks at the rest of HOMRA. Anna and Izumo gave him an encouraging look and Yata give a nod of approval. Other HOMRA members were either indifferent or gave a thumbs up. Steve looks at the Avengers, curious as to what they thought.

        "It's entirely up to you Cap. This is a decision we can't make for you," Bruce says. Clint and Natasha nod in agreement with Bruce.

        "Well it would be strategic to have you here despite you being Captain AMERICA," Tony adds, thinking of the pros and cons. Thor just shrugged, having no opinion and no input on the matter. Steve looks down at his hands. 

        " _You don't have to make a decision right away Captain. In fact, we want you to think it over carefully,"_  Izumo offers to him. Steve nods. 

        "I'm going to talk to Fury real quick then," Steve says. He stands up and goes outside, pulling out the phone Tony gave him. After taking a few moments to remember how to call Fury, he calls up the big boss man. After a few rings, Fury answers.

        "What is it Rogers? Is there a development on what's going over there?"

        "Er yes. I guess I'll inform you about what happened before I tell you why I called you then."

        "Make your report then Rogers."

        "Turns out there's a hostile King here. This clan called JUNGLE has this app I think it's called that allows people to join. By downloading the app, everyone becomes a rank E. They rank up by completing missions. I'm not sure which rank allows people to actually meet the JUNGLE King, or Green King,  but that appears to be the goal. So what we all decided was to have Tony join JUNGLE to have someone on the inside. Instead of being rank E like he should have been, he was rank G. The mission was to capture this young girl named Anna Kushimi who is a member of the red clan which we are working with."

        "And it sounds like this is a problem. Now why is that?"

        "Well, there's definitely something special about her for one thing. I'm not sure what but she's only 11! We have no idea what these people want with her and we're not going to just send her there cause we highly doubt that Tony will be able to see the Green King because of this. So we came up with a plan to keep Anna safe while also keeping Tony an inside man which is leading me to the reason I called you, sir."

        "I see. What is it that you so desperately needed my opinion to help you make a decision on?"

        "Mikoto Suoh, the Red King, has offered to make me his clansman. He and I both are completely against the whole letting Tony take Anna and by making me a red clansman, I'd be able to help out on keeping Anna safe. But that also means I stay here."

        "Hmmmm. That is quite the proposition there. On one hand, it would be beneficial to SHIELD to have you there but also inconvenient if you're needed here. However, as long as this Mikoto guy is alright with it, you can still be an Avenger and if we need your help, we can retrieve you. If he's fine with it, accept it for certain. If he's not, well that's on you to decide on where your loyalties lie. Anything else worth mentioning?" 

        "No sir, but thank you sir," Steve says before hanging up. He takes a moment before heading back inside.

        "So have you made a decision Steve?" Shiro asks with a smile on his face.

        "I just have a question for Mikoto," Steve says. He waits til the redheaded male is looking at him. "If I accept, would you alright with me still being an Avenger?" 

        " _Yeah. I wouldn't take that away from you. As long as you'd be staying with us unless called in that's fine,"_  Mikoto answers.

        "I accept your offer then," Steve says assertively. He quickly catches the white, red and black blur that was Anna as she charged him and hugged him. Steve chuckles softly as he hugs the small girl back.

        " _I'm so happy you're going to join us. You'll be a great addition to the family,"_  Anna says, holding tightly onto the super soldier. Mikoto watches with a smile. He felt better about the whole mission now that he knew Steve would be on this mission, looking out for Anna. The Red King slowly stands up and looks at Steve.

        " _Well, let's make you an official member then. Where do you want the marking? Shoulder blade or chest?"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Anyone.. Anyone get the reference?


	6. Red, White & Blue to just Red

"Speech" - English. " _Speech" -_ Japanese. 'Speech' - thoughts.

* * *

        " _Well, let's make you an official member then. Where do you want the marking? Shoulder blade or chest?"_ Mikoto asks, looking at the man who was going to join HOMRA. Mikoto was actually very happy that Steve decided to accept his offer. Of course, he didn't let anything betray that happiness. He did have a bit of a reputation to keep up. 

        "Uh, I suppose chest?" Steve says. He looks at Mikoto and Izumo. "So is there a special process to this?" 

        " _Well we have a formal way of initiating people into_ HOMRA _so that people don't abuse our powers. However, since Mikoto directly offered you, we won't have to go through the formalities. All that needs to happen is that Mikoto just has to touch his right hand to you while his hand is engulfed in his Aura,"_ Izumo explains. Steve relaxed a little bit.

        "Alright," Steve says. He removes the jacket-like part of his spangly costume. However, before he removed the blue long-sleeved shirt, his face flushed a bit.

        " _Something wrong Captain Rogers?"_ Seri asks, noticing the faint tint on Steve's face. Tony snorts.

        "He's still pretty old fashioned and does not wish to remove his shirt while in the presence of females," Tony snickers.

        "It would be impolite for me to do such a thing Stark!" Steve says, his face turning a bit darker.

        " _Oh. We can leave the room for the moment then. Anna, will you bring myself and Natasha to a different room?"_ Seri says, respecting Steve's wish. The little girl nods. She takes Seri's hand and then Neko's hand and leads them up to her room for the time being, Natasha following the trio. " _Is Captain Rogers always like that?"_

 _"Awww I wanted to see him shirtless!"_ Neko whined as she followed reluctantly, causing Anna to giggle softly.

        "Yeah. He is. It's honestly adorable and refreshing to see someone have some decency, even if said someone is from a different era," Natasha answers. After Steve was certain the girls would not see him, he removes the long sleeve shirt, revealing his rather muscular chest. Almost all of the clansmen that were present were impressed at the chiseled chest of Steve. The blonde still had a faint blush on his cheeks but he looks at Mikoto.

        " _Ready?"_ Mikoto asks, his right hand now engulfed in his red Aura. Steve gives Mikoto a nod and squares his shoulders. The Red King then places his right hand on Steve's left pectoral muscle. The Aura flares across Steve's chest and wraps around his shoulders, meeting on Steve's spine. Mikoto removes his hand and the Aura dissipates, revealing the HOMRA insignia on Steve's chest. " _Welcome home Steve."_

 _"_ Feels good to have a home," Steve says with a smile. He looks at the insignia for a moment before looking at his outfit. "I don't suppose anyone has any clothes that I could borrow? I don't think my uh spangly outfit, as Stark would put it, would be beneficial to not being spotted."

        "Actually Steve, I think we have some spare clothes in the quinjet in case you know.. the Other Guy had to come out," Bruce says, pushing his glasses up.

        "I'll go grab them for you Cap," Clint says before heading out of the bar to where the quinjet had been parked. Steve nods and he pulls the blue shirt back on for now so that the girls could come back down. Izumo walks to the stairs and calls up to the girls, telling them that they were allowed to come back down. A few moments later, Anna, Neko, Seri and Natasha come down the stairs.

        "So, how do you feel Cap?" Natasha asks, looking at Steve.

        "Not too different though I do feel like I found where I belong," Steve answers. "I did feel like I belonged with you guys but it wasn't the perfect fit."

        " _I want to see your red Steve. Can you show us your red?"_  Anna asks, looking up at Steve.

        "Sure," Steve says. He looks down at his hands and tries to feel the Aura. Once he felt it, his hands were engulfed in red. He was pretty amazed.

        " _It's so pretty.. Almost as nice as Mikoto's,"_  Anna says happily. She hugs Mikoto's leg, glad that things seemed to be taking a turn for the better despite the impending fight against JUNGLE. Clint returns a few minutes later and tosses some clothes at Steve who instinctively caught them, putting out the Aura on his hands. Before he could even utter a question, Izumo directed Steve to the bathroom. 

        " _Soooooo.. Once Rogers comes out of the bathroom, are we beginning our operation?"_  Saruhiko asks.

        "That would be wise. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can bring Anna back to safety and the more information we can get," Tony says. Steve walks out of the bathroom, wearing a dark grey dress shirt and dark jeans. His red boots peaked out but it worked out. 

        " _Are you sure you want to do this Anna?"_ Mikoto asks, looking at the small girl that was hugging his leg.

        " _Yes. I feel safe knowing that Steve will be there,"_ Anna says, smiling up at Mikoto. 

        "Well let's get this show on the road! I'll summon my suit and then this bullshit can start," Tony says. He steps outside and has JARVIS summon his suit to him. Clint, Anna, Saruhiko and Steve step outside shortly after, Steve offering a reassuring smile to Mikoto. The suit forms on Tony's body and he looks to Anna. "Alright kiddo, make sure you make it look like you're struggling as I carry you, alright?"

        " _Alright. I'm ready,"_  Anna says, putting on a brave face before going over to Tony and letting him pick her up. Once Tony took off into the air, she starts to "struggle" as Tony carries her. Clint and Steve immediately take to the rooftops to follow Tony and Anna. Saruhiko sighed and he follows the two other men onto the roof. Tony has JARVIS call the number that was given to him along with the location. It rings.

        " _Hello? Is this you, Anthony Stark~?"_ A rather silky voice purrs out.

        "Yeah, this is Tony Stark. I'm approaching the location with Anna Kushina. Who should I expect to see?" Tony replies.

        " _Oooo a translator built in. Clever you are Stark. You will be meeting with me. My name is a Yukari. You won't miss me,"_ Yukari says, smirking. 

        "Great. My ETA is about 10 minutes," Tony says, slightly creeped out Yukari.

        " _Wonderful~ I'll see you and the girl there then~ Toodles~"_  Yukari purrs out before hanging up.


	7. Yukari

 "Speech" - English. " _Speech" -_ Japanese. 'Speech' - thoughts.

* * *

         A male with purple and blue hair stands alone on top of a building. He snaps his phone shut and smirks. Things were going quite smoothly. The man looks around and spots a faint light in the distance getting closer to him. The rather feminine looking man jumps off the building and lands gracefully. The smirk widens upon seeing the red and gold suit of armor descend, a small girl in black red, struggling against the armor's body.

        " _Tony Stark! Miss Kushina! What a pleasure to see you both here!"_ The man says. The mask moves away from Tony's face to reveal it.

        "I assume you are Yukari?" Tony says. He couldn't help but get a slightly creepy vibe off the man.

        " _That is correct! I must say, I'm impressed with how easily you've capture Miss Kushina. How did you find her so quickly and get away from the Red Clan. I assume she was with either the Red King or his second in command,"_ Yukari says. He was curious about how powerful of a clansmen they just gained.

        "Finding Anna was the easiest thing to do. You sent a picture of Anna, I hacked the city's cameras to find her and then pinpointed her location. Fortunately for me, neither the Red King nor his second in command was with Anna. Just some punk on a skateboard," Tony says, arrogantly, as if it was nothing. Anna, who was still playing the part of resistance was doing her best to not burst into giggles at Tony's description of Yata. 

        " _Impressive! You'll be a very valuable member to_ JUNGLE, _Tony~"_ Yukari purrs. He steps closer to Tony, a predatory glint flashing across his brown eyes. Tony stood his ground, despite feeling slightly uncomfortable.

        "Glad to know someone appreciates my skill!" Tony smirks.

        " _I will handle Miss Kushina from here. If you could hand her over,"_ Yukari says. Tony nods and hands the struggling child to the purple and blue haired male. 

        " _Let go of me!"_  Anna shouts, kicking as she was transferred over. She was hoping that Steve and the others would get her soon. 

        " _I will inform the Green King to boost you to rank N for your success,"_ Yukari says, tightening his grip on the girl. Tony nods, the mask covering his face, and he takes off, heading back towards HOMRA. Yukari smirks and he starts walking off with the girl. Saruhiko, Steve and Clint continue to follow the man known as Yukari, looking for an opportunity to save Anna from the Green Clan's clutches.

        "Hey, there's an alleyway. Steve and I should take the opportunity to knock him out and secure Anna right there," Clint says.

        " _No. We should til that man gets closer to his base. See where the Green Clan is located,_ " Saruhiko says. The archer and Blue Clansman look to Steve.

        "Saruhiko's right. We should find out their location. It could come in handy later," Steve says. Saruhiko smirks at Clint who only huffed in response. The trio continue to track Yukari and Anna. Yukari couldn't help but feel like he was being watched but he couldn't spot anything that could be provoking such a feeling. Quickening his pace, Yukari continues heading to his destination. Soon enough the apartment building was in his sights and he relaxed.

        "Go. We'll provide support from up here," Clint says, bow drawn and arrow ready. Steve has his shield on his arm and Saruhiko draws his throwing knives. As Steve jumps down, Clint releases his arrow that when it comes into contact with the wall next to Yukari, a smokescreen covers the area. Saruhiko threw his knives in front and behind Yukari, a blue wall entrapping the man. Yukari coughs into his elbow. When Steve lands, he throws his shield, hitting Yukari in the head, running towards the man. Yukari grunts and drops Anna, holding his head, wondering what the hell hit him. Steve dove and caught Anna, landing on his back as to be a cushion for the small girl. He stands up and sets her on her feet. Steve stands up, and by letting his newly acquired Red Aura engulf his hands, he launches himself at Yukari, punching the man right across the face, knocking him out. With a sigh of relief, Steve grabs his shield and puts it on his back. The blonde then picks Anna up with one arm and then climbs up.

        "Let's go before he wakes up," Steve says. Clint and Saruhiko nod, the Blue Clansman jumping down to get his knives. Once Saruhiko returned to them, the quartet hurriedly heads back towards HOMRA, Anna safe and sound.

**~ Sometime Later ~**

        Yukari wakes with a groan and raging headache. He sits up immediately and swears when seeing that Anna was no longer near him. Hisui would NOT be happy with this development. Sighing, the man gets up and walks into the apartment building that had became JUNGLE's base of operations. He walks in and enters the elevator, hitting the top floor. He waits as he is taken all the way up to the top floor. Yukari leaves the elevator and goes to the only room on that floor. He pushes the door open and bows his head.

        " _I have good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?"_  Yukari says. Hisui turns to look at Yukari.

        " _Hmmmm... Let's go with the good news first_ ," Hisui answers. Yukari nods.

        " _Tony Stark had successfully brought Miss Kushina to the rendezvous and is proven to be a valuable member to our clan. I'd recommend promoting him to rank N. The bad news however is that I lost Miss Kushina. I was almost back when I was attacked. I could not tell you who exactly were my assailants as there was smoke but I believe one of them was of the Red Clan,"_ Yukari reports.

        " _This is an interesting development. So now_ HOMRA _is aware of our attacks. We will have to be more careful now. Rest Yukari. You did well,"_ Hisui says. Yukari nods and walks over to where he usually placed himself while Hisui goes into planning.


	8. This Is Home

        When Tony had returned to HOMRA, everything became tense. Tony paced and could feel Mikoto's eyes on him, watching him for something. What he was being watched for, he didn't know nor did he want to know. After what seemed like an eternity, the doors of HOMRA opened again. The eyes moved from Tony to the people who entered. Much to everyone's relief, it was Steve, Anna, Clint and Saruhiko. Tony watched as the little albino girl ran to Mikoto and hugged him, a smile on the girl's face the whole time. 

        " _Are you alright?"_  Mikoto asked Anna. She nodded and smiled up at Mikoto.

        " _Yup! Tony didn't hurt me and Steve, Clint and Saruhiko rescued me before that horrible man could take me into_ JUNGLE _headquaters!_ " Anna says. Mikoto visibly relaxed and so did Tony. Tony was now relieved that he wasn't going to become a punching bag for the Red King. Mikoto looks to the other three and thanked them for their success. Saruhiko approached Reisi, and saluted him.

        " _Captain. I have a report on the location of the Green Clan's whereabouts,"_ Saruhiko says. 

        " _At ease. What did you discover?"_  Reisi asks.

        " _They're located at the old apartment about twenty from here_ ," Saruhiko reports.

        " _Interesting choice for a base. Very hidden, very secret,_ " Reisi says, stroking his chin.

        "Did anyone figure out what their plan was for Anna?" Natasha asks, curious if that came up.

        "Sadly, no. Yukari, that's the name of the man I met, did not give any specification. However, I assume I will be promoted to Rank N soon," Tony says. He noticed that Kuroh seemed to pale.

        " _Did.. Did you say Yukari?"_ Kuroh asks, a bit shakily. Tony nods. " _Describe him please?_ _"_

 _"_ Well he had mostly purple hair with two blue streaks in it. Kinda feminine, really creepy, might have been hitting on me," Tony describes. Kuroh sighed heavily. 

        " _It seems my old clansman has joined up with the Green Clan.."_  Kuroh states.

        "Old clansman? Meaning he was a Silver clansman?" Bruce asks. Kuroh shakes his head.

        " _No. Before the whole debacle that you all missed, Yukari and I used to be of the Colorless Clan, under Master Ichigen when he was the Colorless King. When he died, Yukari and I split ways. Everyone thought that Shiro was the Colorless King and he was but due to the new Colorless's Kings power of being able to switch bodies, Adolf's soul ended up in Shiro's body,"_ Kuroh explained.

        "Where is this Colorless King now?" Bruce asks.

        " _Dead,"_  was Reisi's blunt reply. Mikoto couldn't help but glare at Reisi since it should have been him to kill the Colorless King. However, the glare wasn't as harsh as it usually was because if Reisi hadn't killed the Colorless King, Reisi would have had to have kill him, and then HOMRA would be Kingless for some time. He also wouldn't have gained the valuable clansman that came in the form of Steve. 

        " _Now, as much as everyone is probably enjoying all this talk, and how we should probably plan, it is getting dark out and we should get our guests settled and let everyone get some rest,"_ Izumo piped up. 

        " _Smart idea Izumo._ Scepter 4  _will head back to base, and we can offer places to rest,"_  Seri says.

        "HOMRA  _can also offer places as well,"_ Izumo says.

        "Well obviously Capsicle will be here as he is now HOMRA. It would make sense to go three and three. I think I would be better off with Scepter 4 in case they try to track me. That way if questioned why I was located in Scepter 4, I could use the cover-up of being arrested," Tony says.

        " _That cover-up would get you removed from_ JUNGLE _most likely. Any Green Clansmen that we've arrested instantly seems to lose their status of a Clansman,"_  Saruhiko says.

        " _Well maybe because Mr. Stark is such a valuable asset to them, they would make an exception,"_  Shiro says. Saruhiko takes a moment to consider the possibility and then nods, accepting it.

        "I'll go with Tony, just to keep him in place," Bruce says.

        "I'll help you then Bruce. He'll need to be watched carefully.." Nat says, glaring lightly at the billionaire who just smiles innocently. 

        "Alright. So me and Thor will stay here. Squad out!" Clint says. With the placements settled, Scepter 4 with Tony, Bruce and Nat head out to the Scepter 4 base. Shiro, Kuroh and Neko head back to Ashinaka High. Izumo shows Steve, Clint and Thor the rooms they were using, the latter two having a guest room. Steve looks around his new room and smiles a bit. It was a lot cozier than his room back at the apartment he had in Brooklyn. It was warmer colored and had a very relaxing vibe to it. Sure, his decision to become a Red Clansman was very sudden and not a lot of time put into it, but it felt right to him. This place felt like home to him, like Brooklyn once did. Brooklyn changed too much and while Shizume City was also modernized like Brooklyn, it didn't feel the same. Shizume City would also give him a fresh start, learn everything about some place he didn't know whereas with Brooklyn he would have relearn a place he once knew and it would never feel like home. Here in Shizume City, not many would know him for being Captain America, and he could get away from the fame. This wasn't a time of war against the Nazis; Captain AMERICA wasn't needed. Heroes? Yes, those were needed but not Captain America. He could remake himself and choose a less... gaudy name and theme. At least he had time to think about that. Steve was startled out of his thoughts by the knock that came from his door. It was Anna and Mikoto.

        "Come in," Steve calls out. He watches as his King, a funny idea to him, and the young girl enter his room.

        " _Is everything suitable to your needs?"_  Mikoto asks, leaning a wall as Anna hops over to Steve. Said girl hugs Steve happily.

        "Uh yeah. A little bland but that can be easily fixed," Steve answers with a nod. Mikoto nods. He then turns to the small girl he currently had in his arms.

        " _Thank you for successfully saving me Steve,"_  Anna says. Steve smiles.

        "Of course," Steve says. Anna hugged Steve one more time before leaving the room and heading up to her room, Izumo having been outside. Mikoto waited for Izumo and Anna to be out of earshot before walking over to Steve and sitting next to the super soldier. Steve looks at the redhead.

        " _I know part of the reason you joined_ HOMRA  _was to protect Anna. Why else did you want to join the destructive clan?"_ Mikoto asks.

        "Well, I saw it as a chance to start fresh. Everything back in Brooklyn is still Brooklyn but a lot of things have changed. A place I once knew changed and wouldn't feel like home. Here though, I have a chance to start anew and find a home. And though you don't like to show it, I can tell that you and the rest of HOMRA is like one big family - something I was robbed of not once, but twice," Steve answered honestly. Mikoto listened and nodded to what Steve was saying. The Red King looks at his feet as he was carefully choosing his words

        " _Well, you're definitely right. New start, a new home and a new family,"_  Mikoto says. After a pause, Mikoto looks back at Steve, his yellow eyes locking with Steve's baby blues. " _Thank you for joining. I'm glad to have you here,"_  Mikoto states. He gives a faint smile to Steve who returned it. He then stands up, wishing a goodnight to Steve before leaving and going to his room.

**~ With JUNGLE ~**

        Nagare Hisui thought long and hard about the news that Yukari had given him. So Tony Stark was to be trusted as he successfully kidnapped the Strain of the Red Clan. He had to wonder if the Red Clan knew that Anna was a Strain. However, despite how trustworthy and successful Tony was, they didn't have Anna. Some Red Clan member had managed to knock Yukari out by surprising him. A wicked smirk crawls onto his face as he thinks of the perfect mission for Tony to have as an N rank. The rank up message and new mission are sent to one Tony Stark to find in the morning.


	9. A New Debacle

        Tony did not like the mission he got. He knew the others also wouldn't like it either and kept quiet all the way to HOMRA. His quietness was immediately noticed by Bruce and Natasha who were concerned as they knew a quiet Tony was never good news. Reisi, Seri and Saruhiko notice the worried looks upon Bruce's and Nat's faces and had a feeling that this morning was not going to be a pleasant one. Regardless, the six head into the HOMRA bar, Mikoto, Anna, Izumo, Yata, Steve, Thor and Clint already there and awake.

        "Is Shiro on the way?" Natasha asks as she takes a seat on a bar stool.

        "Yeah, he should be here soon," Clint answers. Small and quiet talk was made in the bar as the large group waited for the Silver Clan to arrive. After ten minutes, Shiro, Kuroh and Neko enter. Shiro noticed the tension and serious mood in the air and his usual cheery demeanor diminished. 

        " _Now that everyone is here, we can begin. Now, Mr. Stark, you've been rather quiet and seem uneasy. You've been given a new mission, correct?"_  Reisi begins. Tony sighs and runs a hand through his hair.

        "Yeah, new mission. I'm to bring in Yukari's attacker. Obviously I know it's Steve. I will have to wait for a little bit to bring Steve in to make it believable that I didn't know. But that's the problem - I know Steve. If I bring Steve, they'll be onto us... But if I don't bring Steve, then who do I ring? I said I grabbed Anna from Yata so maybe him?" Tony says, coming to a stop since he had been pacing while he explained. 

        " _I don't mind going in place of Steve but I don't think I will be believable,_ " Yata says. A murmur of agreement rustled through the room.

        " _If not Yata, that leaves myself and Mikoto. But it would be more plausible for Tony to capture me instead of Mikoto... Steve how did you attack Yukari?"_  Izumo says. The super soldier sighed.

        "Most likely not your style. I threw my shield and then an Aura powered punch," Steve answered.

        "I do not want to know what it's like to be punched by an Aura powered punch of a super soldier," Clint commented.

        "I'm with you there," Natasha comments.

        " _That is not my style in the slightest,"_  Izumo says to Steve. 

        "Which means we're back to square one," Tony sighs. He plops down on a vacant chair. Silence envelopes the room, everyone thinking long and hard on how to handle this new debacle that was thrust upon them. A giggle pours through the air a few minutes later and everyone turns their head to the source of the giggle - Neko. The cat themed Strain grins and stands on a table, hands on her hips.

        " _I got an idea! I'll make those meanie greens see someone entirely different!"_  Neko proclaimed.

        " _That's actually a viable solution I would imagine,"_  Seri comments. 

        "How would you go about doing that Neko?" Bruce asks, looking at the Silver Clansman.

        " _Neko is a Strain. Strains are individuals who gain powers without a King,"_  Kuroh explains.

        "So a mutant then," Tony says bluntly. Anna cringed a bit which didn't go unnoticed by Steve.

        "Stark!" Steve says sharply.

        "What? Someone with powers naturally is a mutant!" Tony says, not seeing the problem with using the word mutant instead of Strain. He didn't notice Anna's discomfort.

        "That's not a polite way to say it! Besides, they use Strain so use Strain while here," Steve scolded, arms folded over his chest. The two stare each other down, the other four Avengers actually at ease at seeing Steve and Tony bicker. Tony relents by throwing his arms up, not being able to withstand the hardened blue stare he was receiving.

        "Fine!" Tony says. "Now what can Neko do?"

        " _Mess with everyone's perception to keep it simply. Quite the problem at first,"_  Reisi chuckled.

        "That's handy. But does she have to be nearby?" Nat asks.

        " _Not really sure. I've never tried being far away before!"_ Neko says.

        "Well we should test it out first. If it doesn't work then we could just normally disguise Steve," Bruce says.

        "Wonderful idea Banner!" Thor boomed, Bruce no longer jumping to the loudness that was always Thor's voice. 

        "Well, that's the best plan we got, so let's try it," Steve says. With a plan, the morale of the Avengers and the Clansmen goes up. Neko then activates her powers. A burst of powers, a loud  _Nya~!_ , and a bizarre warp later, Steve was barely recognizable. Instead of the 40's styled blonde hair, Steve had shaggy black hair that fell to his shoulders. Replacing the baby blue orbs were forest green ones. The sharp edges of his face became a lot softer, and a black soul patch appeared on his smooth chin. 

        "If I didn't witness that change and knew it was Spangles, I would have wondered who the hell that is," Tony says, impressed at how realistic the change was. Steve looked in the mirror and he was in shock with how different he was. 

        " _Well, let's keep Neko here and have Steve wander away from the bar,"_  Izumo says. 

        " _Fushimi. Go with Steve to measure distance and to make sure that he doesn't get lost,"_  Seri says. Saruhiko simply nods. Steve then leaves, Saruhiko following him to get the distance while Neko stayed in the HOMRA bar. The illusion dropped after ten blocks and the two turn and head back, Saruhiko leading the way back to the bar. 

        " _10 blocks. We can safely set Neko up near the old apartment buildings and keep Steve's identity hidden,"_ Saruhiko says.

        " _Mikoto, can we give Steve an honorary Japanese name since he's one of us now and will need a name to use as a cover?"_  Yata asks. Mikoto thinks for a moment.

        " _Komainu, Koma for short,"_  Mikoto says. Izumo smiles.

        " _Suiting. The dog guardians that ward off evil spirits,"_  Izumo says, looking at Steve. Steve smiles as well.

        "I like it," the super soldier says. He starts thinking of ways he could use Komainu to replace is his Captain America identity. However, he supposed he could do that later as there were more pressing matters at hand like stopping the Green King.

        "Then it's settled! In an hour, we will have Tony bring in Steve and hopefully we can learn more about what the Green King is planning!" Shiro says happily. Tony was prepared to have to stay with JUNGLE should the need arise. Did he like the idea? Not particularly, but he could make sacrifices contrary to popular belief. Steve was also prepared to stay silent as to not give away that he was actually American. While Neko probably could make it so he spoke Japanese, Steve figured that might be pushing the limit though. Tony modified the ear pieces that the Avengers wore so that they could transmit any plans to those back at HOMRA. When the hour passed, Tony, Steve and Neko head out towards where Tony had met Yukari. Neko activates her powers to make Steve look like he did before when she first used her powers on him. She absconds to the rooftops to stay out of sight and was in cat form. Tony was in his Iron Man suit, and was "restraining" Steve as he calls Yukari. Steve made it seem like he was partially unconscious.

        " _Ah hello Tony~ What is it~?"_  came the silky voice of Yukari.

        "I have your attacker. I'm currently where we first met," Tony says.

        " _Wonderful. I will send you coordinates to where we are located. You will not be able to see our King due to your ranking but you will meet with me and another J-ranking member.. Did you catch the name of my attacker?"_ Yukari says. He was curious as to who it was.

        "All I was able to catch was that HOMRA calls him Komainu," Tony says.

        " _Komainu... Interesting... He must be a newer member of the Red Clan.."_ Yukari mutters. " _Just bring him to the specified location."_

 _"_ Roger that," Tony says, before hanging up. Moments later, he receives coordinates and assumed this was where Saruhiko, Steve and Clint had followed Yukari yesterday. Tony was flying low since he was carrying Steve who was trying to make it easier on him. Neko kept pace and stayed out of sight. The billionaire noticed a large apartment building coming up and standing nearby the apartment building was Yukari and a short, rather feminine looking boy. As he got closer, he noticed a parrot was on Yukari's shoulder. Tony lands and sets Steve on the ground sitting, his mask moving away.

        " _Hello Tony~ Meet fellow clansmen Sukuna Gojo and Kotosaka,"_  Yukari says. 

        "You have a parrot as a clansman?" Tony asks, arching an eyebrow. This caused the boy, now known as Sukuna to snort.

        " _Yeah. Nagare will use Kotosaka to talk to us,"_  Sukuna says. " _So this is the guy that got you Yukari? He doesn't look too impressive..."_

        "He may not look it but it wasn't easy to subdue him. I managed with the help of the green Aura and my suit," Tony says.

        " _Very well, let's bring Komainu to a more.. private place. We don't want to be near prying eyes now do we~?"_ Yukari says, turning and heading off to the alleyway that was right next to the apartment building which was out of the public eye. Tony drags Steve, or Komainu, to the alley. Once Komainu was sat down again, Sukuna pokes Komainu with a finger, using some green Aura to jolt him awake, assuming that Komainu was unconscious. This causes Komainu's forest green eyes to snap open. 

        " _Hello Komainu. Interesting name. Makes me wonder what your real name is..."_ Sukuna says, before turning to Yukari. 

        " _Nagare, our objective is awake,"_ Yukari says to Kotosaka. 

        " _Wonderful, what is our guest's name?"_ Nagare says.

        "Komainu. Couldn't find his real name anywhere yet," Tony says to the bird. Kotosaka turns to look at Komainu.

        " _Well, Komainu. Care to explain how you did it? How you managed to not only best one of the strongest members of my clan, but also surprise him?"_  Nagare asks. Komainu just looks at the bird and says nothing, refusing to speak. It would blow his cover if he did. " _I wasn't really expecting an answer to be honest."_

        "No disrespect but why do you want to question him?" Tony asks.

        " _Wonderful question Tony. Sukuna, please inform him why I am questioning Komainu,"_  Nagare says. Sukuna nods and walks over to Tony, who bends down. Sukuna explains in a whispered tone that by questioning Komainu, they eventually get him to slip and reveal any plans or information about HOMRA that could be beneficial. Tony nods in understanding. Nagare and Yukari continue to question Komainu who simply remains quiet. This was starting to frustrate the green Clansmen as they weren't getting anywhere. Sukuna was starting to lose his temper, being a teenager after all, and uses the electricity granted to him to zap Komainu. Komainu grits his teeth as he was zapped, still not giving in. Tony mentally sweat drops, knowing that Komainu was starting to reach his limit of being badgered around and just taking it. When Sukuna went to zap Komainu again, the Avenger turned HOMRA Clansman grabs the small wrist and directs the hit to Yukari. Kotosaka squawks as he got away from Yukari. Tony lets his mask cover his face and goes into the air as Komainu jumps up, red Aura around him. 

        " _Don't let him get away!"_  Sukuna says to Tony, his scythe in his hands. Yukari soon enough had his sword.

        "Right," Tony says. Tony felt bad for attacking Komainu but knew he would understand. As such, Tony blasts Komainu from his gauntlets, Komainu dodging. Sukuna and Yukari attack to where Komainu had rolled to. Komainu barely avoids the sharp blades as he lets the red Aura charge around him. Komainu punches Yukari in the guts, knocking the wind out of the swordsman. Upon seeing both the scythe blade and a blast of light coming towards him, Komainu releases the charged up Aura in a blast of red. Everyone goes flying; Tony ends up out of the alleyway, Sukuna against a dumpster, Yukari against a fence and Komainu against the wall of the apartment building. Neko, who was wondering what was taking so long, had gone to investigate at the wrong time. She had arrived just as Komainu released the blast, and it had startled her, causing her drop the illusion she had set up. 

        " _What the hell?? Who is this?! Where is Komainu?!"_ Sukuna says, noticing that instead of the shaggy haired man with forest green eyes, was a man with blonde hair and blue eyes. Komainu, or now Steve, realized that Neko must have been startled. Tony flew back in and internally groaned when seeing that the plan had inevitably failed. Deciding that he needed to stay as a mole, Tony goes to play dumb and shock.

        "Steve? You're here?"


	10. Things Go South

        "Steve? You're here?" Tony asks, playing dumb and pretending to be in shock. He hoped Steve caught on to what he was doing. Fortunately, Steve realized quickly what Tony was doing.

        "I could ask you the same thing Stark. Why are you running around with these guys??" Steve scowls. The two Japanese green clansmen were in too much shock to properly react to the conversation.

        "Why are you sticking your nose into my business? I could ask the same as you, since you're obviously apart of the red clan," Tony retorts.

        "Fury sent me to investigate. You've been gone for much longer than normal and we wanted to make sure you're alright," Steve says.

        "Well obviously I'm fine. But I'm shocked you actually joined a clan," Tony says. Before Steve could respond, Yukari had snapped out of his state of shock.

        " _You know this man Tony? And he was my attacker?"_  Yukari says. His eyes flash dangerously. " _I hope you aren't working together. It would be a shame to lose such a valuable member."_

        "Trust me, we're currently not working together. Normally we do but it would seem like we're on opposing sides this time," Tony says.

        "Tony, you're helping the wrong people!" Steve says, exasperated.

        "You don't know that. For all you know, you could have been tricked," Tony defends. Sukuna finally recovers. His scythe was out now.

        " _Well, regardless of you two knowing each other, we need to apprehend him! Especially since he's a Red!"_  Sukuna shouted, much too eager to fight Steve and make him pay for the humiliation that the super soldier had forced upon the green clansmen. 

        " _Agreed Sukuna_ ," Yukari says, his sword now in hand. Steve wished he had his shield but knew he needed to get out of there fast. Deciding to take the first attack, Steve throws an Aura powered punch at Tony, catching him off-guard. Steve follows up with a swift kick towards Sukuna and Yukari, causing the two to back up in order not to be hit. Seeing his chance to escape, knowing it would be unwise to stay and fight this time, Steve books it away from the alley. He hears Tony's jets and knows that Tony has recovered and was now going to be searching for him. The super soldier looks around for a place to duck into and spots an even smaller alleyway and ducks into it, hoping that Tony would miss him. He jumped a bit when Neko appeared in cat form but relaxed when he realized it was only Neko. After not being able to hear the jets, Steve picks up Neko and he starts running back to HOMRA.

        Tony returns to Yukari and Sukuna with a shake of his head. After a quick debate on whether or not to let Tony into the apartment, Yukari and Sukuna decided that it would be safest to keep Tony with them in case Steve showed up again with HOMRA. Tony understood that he was getting a privilege of seeing Nagare before becoming rank J, and kept his mouth shut for once. This was information he needed to gather to help the others out. He follows the two into the building and had almost forgot about the bird, Kotosaka, only to be reminded when said bird landed on Yukari's shoulder. After a painful and awkward silence up the elevator, Tony is admitted to the room that Yukari, Sukuna, Nagare and one additional person shared. Tony exits his suit before properly entering the room.

        " _Ah mister Stark. A pleasure to meet you in person. You must understand that this is very unusual, but given the circumstances, I approved Yukari's and Sukuna's decision to let you stay with us,"_  Nagare says. Tony nodded in understanding. He took in Nagare's looks and was honestly surprised to see him in a wheelchair. 

        "Well it's nice to meet you in person. And not to be the stereotypical rude American, but who are you?" Tony says, turning his attention to a man dressed in grey. The man stands up.

        " _I am Tenkei Iwafune. This secret can never leave the room but I am the Sixth and Gray King,"_  the man, Tenkei answered. Tony filed that information away for now. 

        "Wonderful! So now that we have all of this information, what's our plan of attack? Cause I can tell you, Steve is probably going to try to get all of HOMRA to march on this spot," Tony says.

        " _Well, that's what we are going to discuss,"_  Nagare answers. He motions for Tenkei and Tony to sit and the two sit down and get comfortable.

**~ At HOMRA ~**

        Steve arrives outside of HOMRA, still holding Neko. He was breathing was a bit labored due to having sprinted almost the entire way from the apartments back to the bar. He pushes the doors open and everyone looks to him and Neko. Neko hops out of Steve's arms and transform back into her human form, causing Steve to have to look away. He only looked up when Nat told him that Neko was covered. 

        "So since Stark isn't with you.. Things didn't go well?" Bruce asks.

        " _It's all my fault! I was wondering why Steve was taking so long so I went to get a better look and I got startled and dropped the illusion,"_  Neko says, clearly upset for messing up.

        "It's alright Neko. Things were going south anyways," Steve says, hoping to make the Strain feel better. He opens his arms up and Neko launches herself into Steve's arms, tears falling. He rubs the Strain's back in a soothing manner until Neko slowly calmed down. Neko quietly thanks Steve before going to sit by Kuroh and Shiroh

        " _So what happened to Stark?"_ Yata pipes up, after Neko had calmed. He voiced the question that had everyone curious. Steve explains what happened after the illusion dropped. When he had finished, everyone took a moment to mull over the information that they were just given. Now that Tony would not be able to report to them easily, HOMRA, Scepter 4, White Rice Party and the Avengers had to come up with a plan without the intel they would have had from Tony.  


	11. Tony and JUNGLE

                Nagare looks at his assembled clansmen. There were many things to discuss and it would seem like they would have to expedite their plan and skip a few steps. They would have to skip using Anna as bait since it was near impossible to capture AND hold onto the young Strain. Based off of the conversation between Tony and the man who he called Steve, he assumed that Steve was the only one sent over, but he would have to double check with Tony on that. He was also contemplating on promoting Tony to J rank to keep a much better eye on him and a tighter grip. He then smiles before speaking.

        " _Since a monkey wrench has been thrown into our plans, we must replan if we want to take down the other clans. After all, it would be a shame for all that power within the Dresden Slate to go to waste.."_  Nagare starts off with.

        " _Agreed. What do you propose Nagare?"_  Yukari asks.

        " _Well, before we start drawing up a new plan, I have two things to discuss, both in regards to Mr. Stark,"_  Nagare says. " _Do you know if anyone came with that man Steve?"_

        "Not that I'm aware of. It would seem like our boss sent only Steve. Though I do have to wonder how he became a HOMRA member. The communication part wouldn't be hard as before I left America, I made everyone who needs one a translator bracelet. Also, just call me Tony," Tony says.

        " _I see. Well, we don't have time to worry about that. Now the other topic - Tony's ranking. I believe it would be beneficial to promote him all the way to J rank. Those in agreement with me, raise your hand,"_ Nagare says. Sukuna, Yukari and Tenkei all raise their hands. " _Wonderful, Tony will now be an official J rank. You will get access to our base and an immense amount of power."_

"Thank you, Nagare," Tony says, bowing his head to the Green King. 

        " _Alright! Let's get to planning!_ " Sukuna says excitedly.

        " _Indeed. We know that the Reds know what we are up to. It is probably also safe to assume that the Blues and Silvers know as well. They not only have two Strains on their side, but also one of Tony's coworkers,"_  Tenkei says. " _What can you tell us about Steve?"_

        "Well Steve is what is called a super soldier. In the 40's, during World War 2, there was a program to make super soldiers and Steve was in that program. He was the first, and only, super soldier to come out of that program. He was injected with this serum to make him at peak performance - enhanced speed and strength, increased metabolism and durability, amazing reaction and processing time and the best reflexes," Tony explains.

        " _Wow.. He's like a man-made Strain! He's a powerful player on the field!"_ Sukuna exclaims.

        " _That he is. But don't forget about our own Tony. He's obviously on the same level.. Just in a different way,"_  Nagare says.

        "Well yeah. I'm Iron Man. Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist," Tony brags. The memory of him saying that to Steve flashes across his mind for a moment and he almost snorts. "Outside the suit, its my genius that helps our group. And then the suit obviously helps the group with the fighting."

        " _Should we have to worry about the rest of your group being called?"_  Yukari asks.

        "Maybe. If that's the case, we have Thor, the Norse God of Thunder. Uh, two assassins who are actually really impressive and a guy you really don't want to piss off unless you wanna deal with a giant, green rage machine," Tony comments.

        " _You said Steve is from the 40's, correct?"_ Tenkei asks.

        "Yeah, what about that?" Tony asks, playing dumb.

        " _The Silvers are definitely helping then. Their King is Adolf K Weismann and he was one of the people behind the discovery of the Dresden Slates. I would bet on the two knowing each other..."_  Tenkei says. This causes silence to wash over the occupants of the room. Tony breaks it.

        "Alright, so now we know at least two clans are partnered. No big deal. JUNGLE has a lot of clansmen, right? Why not set them up as a distraction force? Send them to attack HOMRA and the Silver Clan," Tony says as if that was obvious.

        " _Mmmm.. That is a good idea. Send our clansmen to attack the_ HOMRA _bar and then go for the Dresden Slate while they're dealing with our clansmen,"_  Nagare says. A wicked grin splits across his face. " _What a wonderful idea Tony. You'll assist with the Dresden Slate. I wonder if the Gold King is still alive. If he's still alive, that would cause an issue..."_

        " _If he isn't already dead, then he will be dying soon. Unlike Weismann, he doesn't not have immortality,"_  Tenkei says.

        "So send a spy to spy on the Gold King and to report back when he dies so we can launch this plan as soon as possible?" Tony suggests.

        " _That would work. I think we should send Miss Hirasaka. She is only U rank but she is highly skilled and this would be her forte,"_ Yukari adds on.

        " _She would just have to be aware of the Usagi, as will we when the Gold King dies,"_  Nagare says. He noticed the question that Tony was about to ask. " _Before you ask Tony, the Usagi are the few of the Gold Clan who can actually fight. However, because they are Gold Clan and can fight, they are some of the best fighters out there. The Gold Aura enhances someone's talent to full potential."_

        "Interesting.. Shame you don't have someone on the inside," Tony mutters.

        " _Shame that is. But even then, they are very few. So the plan for the time being will be this - Miss Hirasaka will go spy on the Gold Clan. When the Gold King dies, she informs us and we send our lower clansmen to attack_ HOMRA _. Then, while Red and Silver are busy with our clansmen, the five of us go capture the Dresden Slate before the Blues can interfere,"_ Nagare says. The other floor nod in agreement and Yukari sends the assignment out to Douhan Hirasaka. Tony pardons himself from the room and goes out into the hallway. He knew he couldn't reveal ALL of the plan, but he knew he had to tell the others something and he needed to do it fast and now. Hoping that Steve didn't accidentally delete his text, Tony sends the Avenger now Red Clansman a text about the Gold King.


	12. Fixes and Bonds

        It wouldn't be til a week later when JUNGLE struck and the battle over the Dresden Slate began. The tension between HOMRA, Scepter 4, the Avengers and the White Rice Party was high. Everyone knew that JUNGLE knew that Silver and Red were aligned. Everyone hoped that JUNGLE hadn't figured out that Scepter 4 was aligned with them as well and that the rest of the Avengers had joined the fray. The Avengers spent most of their time with HOMRA since Scepter 4 would be busy doing their usual jobs and outside of Shiro teaching Steve Japanese, it seemed like the White Rice Party would just disappear randomly. 

        Steve was learning Japanese surprisingly quick much to his delight. A lot of HOMRA helped out in teaching Steve Japanese since the blonde super soldier is one of them. Steve also made it a habit to speak in Japanese when speaking with any of HOMRA, White Rice or Scepter 4 so he could get the practice in and have practical Japanese speaking. This way, once this whole thing was over, he wouldn't need the translator or accidentally offended one of Japan's citizens. Speaking of citizens, he needed to get a citizenship for Japan since he didn't have one yet. But that could wait til after the fight for the Dresden Slate. Currently, Steve was hanging out at the bar with Izumo, Anna and Mikoto, no one else was in the bar as the other Avengers had decided to go walk around Shizume City. Some HOMRA members followed the group at a distance in case they got lost. The rest of HOMRA was doing their normal business.

        A glass slides smoothly across the bar to Steve, and another to Mikoto. Steve looks at the glass and recognized it to be one of Izumo's favorite brands of whiskey. He nods his thanks to Izumo and takes a sip of the surprisingly smooth liquid. Steve closes his eyes to savor the taste as it washes down his throat. He opens his eyes and finds that Mikoto, Anna and Izumo were looking at him, as if expecting something from him.

        " _You look like you have a question,"_  Steve states, his Japanese still a little rough. It was an improvement than from when he started however.

        " _You're anxious,"_  Anna says, scooching her stool closer to Steve. Once in range, she sets a small and pale hand on Steve's much larger hand.

        " _And since it's just us four, we figured you would be more comfortable talking about what's causing you to be anxious,"_  Izumo says, gesturing to each of them with his glass before taking a sip of his own whiskey.

 _"So, what's on your mind Steve?_ " Mikoto asks, being as blunt as ever. Something that Steve found rather refreshing. However he sighs.

        " _Well, it's been almost a week since that mission happened and since Tony told us about the plans with the Gold King. I know Shiro has been visiting him and from what Shiro is saying, it sounds like that battle will be happening soon,"_ Steve admits.

        " _Ah, yes, that is indeed on everyone's mind. But that doesn't sound like all of it,"_  Izumo comments. Both Anna and Mikoto just look at Steve, expecting him to continue. Steve looks down at the glass in his hands, swirling the amber colored liquid in the glass gently. He was thinking about how he would voice his concerns. He knew that these guys cared about him and they were essentially a family now, he didn't want to overstep with his protective feelings. After a few more moments of thinking, Steve decides that the best way to voice his concerns would be to just voice them. He was probably just overthinking with the overstepping part was what he told himself. Steve looks back up and at Mikoto and Anna.

        " _I'm primarily concerned about you two. I'm concerned about Anna since the Greens want something to do with her and that doesn't sit well with me at all. And I'm concerned about Mikoto because of your Sword of Damocles. It's not in as pristine shape as the others. Shiro explained to me what that meant,"_  Steve says. He did not back his gaze down from Mikoto's piercing yellow gaze. 

        " _So, you found out about that. I had a feeling you would,"_  Mikoto sighs. He runs a hand through his red hair before knocking back the rest of his whiskey. " _So, what are you going to do about those two things?"_

" _What?"_ Steve asks, taken by surprise of Mikoto's question.

        " _What are you going to do?"_  Mikoto says. He keeps Steve's eyes locked with him. Izumo knew what was happening. It was a common tactic that Mikoto pulled whenever someone showed a lot of concern about him. Izumo and Anna watch the two have a stare down. Izumo couldn't help but smile knowingly as he could see that the amount of care between Steve and Mikoto that was there and knew it could blossom into something more. But that would only be possible if Steve didn't back down and actually went through with his answer. 

        " _I'm going to talk to Bruce and Shiro to see if they could work anything out with the Sword of Damocles. With Anna, we're going to keep her safe so the Greens don't get their hands on her. And you? I don't care if I'm overstepping my ranking or whatever, but I'll be damned if I let you sacrifice yourself to kill the Green King,"_  Steve says, folding his arms across his chest. He kept his eyes locked with Mikoto. Steve could feel his old self starting to return to him. He was the guy that stood up for what HE believed in. He was the guy who did what was RIGHT, not what as easy. The reason why Erskine chose HIM to be the first test subject for the super soldier serum. The reason why he became Captain America in the first place. 

        " _I'll hold you to that then Steve_ ," Mikoto says, a small but amused smile on his face.

        " _I won't let you down,"_  Steve says, determination flashing across his eyes. Anna smiles and she hops off her bar stool and climbs up the side of Steve's bar stool. Steve sees this and picks Anna up, knowing what the albino Strain was going to do. Anna then hugs Steve around his neck.

        " _Thank you Steve. Especially for trying to save Mikoto,"_  Anna whispers in Steve's ear. Steve nods to Anna's statement, acknowledging her thanks. With some help from Steve, Anna climbs down and back into her chair.

        " _I'm going to call Bruce and Shiro to see if we can start figuring out a way to fix the Sword of Damocles,"_ Steve says, excusing himself. He hops off his bar stool and goes outside to first call Shiro to see if the First King could get him and Bruce in to see the Dresden Slate. Upon hearing that Shiro would try and most likely would be able to get them in, Steve then calls up Bruce to make sure that the good doctor would be up to doing such a thing without Tony being there. Steve was relieved upon hearing a chuckle out of Bruce saying he would be more than relieved in a joking tone. The super soldier walks back into HOMRA and nods to the three, signifying that his plan was on the move. 


	13. The Dresden Slate

        The next day, Shiro, Steve and Bruce head towards the Timeless Palace. Steve and Bruce were told that Daikaku Kokujōji, the Gold and second King, is the strongest of the seven Kings due to being in possession of the Dresden Slate. Shiro also informed Steve that Daikaku was a Lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Army as a heads up. The trio hoped that this plan would work as if it didn't, well shit would be fucked quite frankly.

        " _Daikaku! I have brought Steve and Bruce with me today. No need to get up,"_ Shiro calls out as he steps into the room with the two Avengers behind him. Daikaku, despite withering away due to old age, sits up and looks over.

        " _Weismann has told me the two of you are trustworthy and I will hold you to that, otherwise I will force you out myself,"_  Daikaku warns.

        "We uh wouldn't dare break that trust. We appreciate that you are letting Steve and myself here," Bruce says politely and a tad nervously. Steve walks over to Daikaku, who watches the blonde.

        " _Even though we were on different sides, you deserve as much respect as I do,"_  Steve says in Japanese before saluting Daikoku. 

        " _While I thank your kind words, I do not deserve them. There were many atrocities that the Imperial Army committed, even if I personally did not commit them,"_  Daikoku says. Shiro had informed him about Steve, so he was not confused as to why this young man was saluting him as such.

        " _But that already makes you a better man. Shiro also informed me that you are the reason that Japan was able to get back on its feet, so you still deserve respect,"_  Steve says with a smile. Daikoku couldn't help but chuckle upon hearing Steve's words. He would have expected the American to resent him but here was Captain America, treating him with respect.

        " _I can see why you were chosen to be Captain America back then,"_  Daikoku muses. " _Anyways, go help your friend with the Slate,"_  the Gold King says, dismissing Steve. Steve bows his head in respect before joining Bruce at the Slate. Shiro walks over to Daikoku.

        " _So, what do you think of Steven Grant Rogers?"_  Shiro asks his old friend.

        " _He's a good and honorable man. And he's joined_ HOMRA,  _you say? Interesting choice I must say. I'm surprised you didn't try to get him to join yours. Or the fact that Munakata didn't try to nab him,"_  Daikoku says.

        " _Well, Mikoto was the first to get the chance to offer, but it makes sense. Those in the Red clan are a very close knit family and Steve needs that stability of a family._ Scepter 4 _would be too much like the army for Steve even though it would provide stability. Being with_ HOMRA _also gives Steve some freedom. I would have offered Steve to join my clan but I think Neko would give him a heart attack,"_ Shiro explains, laughing a bit towards the end. Daikoku looks at Shiro for a moment before speaking.

        " _You grew feelings for him, didn't you? You look at Steve in a way similar to how you would look at Klaudia, yet you don't act upon those feelings. Why?"_ the Gold King asks. Shiro sighs.

        " _I don't act upon those feelings for one, I am still in a teenager's body, and two, I can tell Steve has grown feelings for someone else, despite him not realizing it yet,"_  the Silver King answers. " _The way he looks at Mikoto and talks with Mikoto shows it all. I will not ruin that. I can and will move on from that."_

 _"That's very noble and wise of you Weismann,"_ Daikoku says. The two Kings looks over to where Bruce and Steve were studying the Slate.  Bruce crouching over the Slate at various spots, trying to read the engravings. Steve was there, ready to write things down for Bruce since he wasn't good with anything sciencey.

        "Hmm.. Cap, I think we're better off getting Thor in here... While I am decently versed in Latin, Thor might have a better chance at understanding what is written here. I am not sure if his Allspeak would work for written languages," Bruce says, looking up at Steve.

        "It's worth a shot. I mean he can read all of our news and the likes. I highly doubt they speak English up on Asgard," Steve says.

        "True. Worst case scenario, it doesn't work like that. Can you uh, ask if Thor may be permitted here?" Bruce asks Steve, fidgeting a bit. Steve nods and he walks over to Shiro and Daikoku.

        " _Would it be alright if we asked our friend Thor to come here? He might be able to help us with the Latin,"_  Steve asks.

        " _As long as he behaves and doesn't try anything stupid,"_  Daikoku answers. Steve nods and he walks back over to Bruce, telling him that it was alright. The nervous scientist nods and he pulls out his phone, calling Thor. Another ten minutes later, Thor comes walking into the room. He greets Daikoku and Shiro happily before heading over to Steve and Bruce.

        "So! What am I being tasked with?" Thor asks, rubbing his hands together.

        "Nothing that involves punching things, breaking things with Mjolnir or using lightning," Steve says.

        "We were wondering if your Allspeak allows you to understand written languages," Bruce answers, pushing up his glasses.

        "Aye. As you know, I can read many things here on Midgard yet none of those are the language we speak up on Asgard. What do you need assistance in translating?" Thor asks. Steve and Bruce gesture to the engravings on the Slate.

        "All of this Latin. I'm able to get a few things dealing with Kings but other than that, not much," Bruce says. Steve hands the notepad over to Thor, who looks over it.

        "Alright, where did you find these particular engravings?" Thor asks. Bruce shows Thor and the blonde god crouches to start looking over all of the Latin. Bruce backs up and watches as Thor motions Steve over. The two blondes move slowly over the Slate, Thor translating and Steve transcribing. Bruce did his best to listen for anything useful but Thor was speaking surprisingly quiet. Eventually, Thor stands up and nods to Steve. The god walks over to Bruce and pats him on the shoulder.

        "Thanks Thor. Hopefully that will help us," Bruce says.

        "No problem! See you later!" Thor says jovially as he leaves Timeless Palace. Bruce goes over to Steve who shows the notepad with all of Thor's translations. Bruce takes the notepad. Shiro walks over curiously.

        "Alright. I'll go over these and figure out which passages might be the most useful. I don't think there's anything I can do. If I had to guess, based on how all of this works, it's going to have to be something that Mikoto will have to do himself, IF there is anything," Bruce says.

        "Do you think we will have to be back?" Steve asks.

        "...Possibly but just glancing over these translations, I don't think so," Bruce says. Shiro then turns to Daikoku.

        " _Thank you old friend! I will be back as usual but I will be alone next time,"_  Shiro calls out.

        " _Just be safe Weismann,"_  Daikoku responds. The three then turn and walk out of Timeless Palace, Bruce reading over the notes and Steve making sure that the good doctor didn't walk into anything. Just as Daikoku turns to look away, a small flash of green enters his peripherals and he now knows that JUNGLE is watching him.

**~ Outside of the JUNGLE base ~**

        Douhan waits directly outside of the apartment in which the J-ranked clansmen of JUNGLE resided. She was not surprised to see that Yukari had come to get her information. However, she was a little surprised the one and only Tony Stark step out with Yukari. 

        " _So, Miss Hirasaka, what news do you have? Is the Gold King already dead?"_ Yukari asks, looking at the ninja. Douhan shakes her head.

        " _No, I have more.. Interesting news. Steve was there as was the Silver King. A meek looking man with glasses was with him. Eventually a rather happy blonde joined them. They were trying to figure out something with the Slate. I didn't dare get close enough to hear for the Gold King would have noticed my presence,"_  Douhan reports. Yukari looks at Tony.

        " _The two that were with your... colleague.. Who were they?"_ Yukari asks.

        "Sounds like Bruce and Thor. We should bring this to Nagare's attention," Tony says. Yukari nods. He dismisses Douhan and the ninja takes off. The purple haired man slings an arm around Tony's shoulder and pulls him close.

        " _We definitely should. So, let's go update and alert Nagare,"_  Yukari purrs. Tony was starting to realize that he might have been this asshole - the whole constantly hitting on someone and making them uncomfortable thing. He made it a mental note to NOT do that, especially if he wanted to be with Pepper. 

        "Yeah, let's," Tony says, trying to hide the discomfort from Yukari. He was pretty sure that the flamboyant man knew he was uncomfortable and just doing this to get under his skin. The two walk back into the apartment and take their seats. Tenkei looks at the two.

        " _So? What did Miss Hirasaka want?"_  Tenkei asks.

        "Turns out two more of my colleagues are here, which is making me believe that the rest of the team got called in. Steve was seen with Bruce, the Hulk, and Thor, the Norse God of Thunder," Tony says.

        " _I wonder what they wanted with the Slate..."_  Nagare hums out. 

        " _Probably just trying to figure out what the Slate does. They have a free pass knowing the Silver King, yeah?"_  Sukuna pipes up from his spot.

        " _This is true. We will still go with our plan, but with the knowledge we will most likely have to face off the Avengers,"_  Nagare says. The rest of JUNGLE and Tenkei nod and everyone goes back to what they were doing prior to Douhan's arrival and information.


End file.
